TRANSCRIPT STARTS, 11:18 P.M.
VOICE 1: I think it’s deeply ironic that Mrs. Hunter has stated many times that she would like Mr. Hunter to express his feelings more, and then, as soon as he says he’s unhappy about something, she flies into invective about “unfeeling creep” and so on. She’s flip-flopping. I’d suggest she try to make up her mind before the next debate: Does she want feelings or does she not want feelings?
VOICE 2: Is Mr. Hunter claiming that his emotional life is so limited that his only feelings are about having to pick up socks? That’s not a man’s feelings. That’s a toddler’s whining. I don’t believe it’s unreasonable to expect a 42-year-old to be a man. That’s all Mrs. Hunter is asking for.
VOICE 1: Again, Mrs. Hunter tries to obscure the real issues. Mr. Hunter was clearly talking about a lot more than socks. She can’t hide from the fact she hasn’t had relations with him in two months. Two months. That’s unfeeling incarnate.
VOICE 2: He can’t pick up one sock, but he wants her to spread her legs every time he has an itch? Are you getting a sense of the level of selfishness Mrs. Hunter deals with?
VOICE 1: I would suggest there’s a pattern under this whole dispute, which is Mrs. Hunter’s need to control, control, control.
VOICE 2: Is Mr. Hunter afraid of a woman with a little self-confidence? It saddens me to say this, but there’s a deep vein of sexism in really everything Mr. Hunter says. Is that what he thinks America wants? Is that his idea of the future? More like going backwards. Listening to him, I could close my eyes and think I’m in the 1950s.
VOICE 1: I should be shocked that Mrs. Hunter would play the sexism card, but I’m not. How can I be shocked by anything from a woman who uses tears and histrionics to bully?
VOICE 2: It’s outrageous to suggest her crying was a stunt or manipulative. That was real feeling. I’m not surprised Mr. Hunter is unfamiliar with that. His only real feelings, apparently, are stirred at the horror of having to pick up after himself and be a grown-up.
VOICE 1: Let’s look at what was actually said, for once. He said, “Sometimes I think you need something to do other than rattle around this empty house.” That is an expression of concern for her well-being.
VOICE 2: And of course he knew she would hear that as a criticism—that she has nothing better to do. And he knew he was cutting a tender nerve with the talk of an “empty house.” It wasn’t her fault. She wanted children to fill her house and her life, and it just wasn’t possible. He can’t claim to be surprised that he hurt her when he said what he said.
VOICE 1: I think this all speaks to a sense of proportion. It’s very clear that the dispute started with the sock question, a trivial matter, and Mrs. Hunter immediately escalated it to vent long-standing feelings of emptiness and meaninglessness that are really her own baggage. Does she want someone else to take care of these things for her? Most people would agree that we need more self-reliance in this world, not more dependence.
VOICE 2: Self-reliance, or cowardice? Actions speak louder than words, my friends. And we all saw how Mr. Hunter walked away from this discussion to sulk in his workroom–leaving his wife, the woman he swore to cherish and support, in agonized tears. He either knows he has lost or he has something to hide. I’ll let you ask him which it is.
VOICE 1: I’m left with one, very unsettling question: Do we know who the real Vicky Hunter is?
VOICE 2: I hope all of America watched this debate. If they saw that smug little look he gets on his face when he thinks he made a good point, they’ll want to punch him in the mouth, too.
TRANSCRIPT ENDS
